1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a portable terminal connected with a host device. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for determining an Operating System (OS) of a host device connected through a Universal Serial Bus (USB) in a portable terminal.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, in accordance with the rapid development of portable terminals, as such devices can now perform wireless voice communication and information exchange via the Internet. As a result, portable terminals have become necessities of modern life. It is recognized that in the beginning of development of portable terminals, there primary appeal was that such portable terminals were simply carried and permitted performance of wireless communication. However, as the technology used in the design and manufacture of such portable terminals has been developed over time, and wireless Internet access has been introduced, modern portable terminals may perform not only a phone call function or a schedule management function but also game functions, a remote controller function using local area communication, and an image photographing function by a mounted digital camera. Therefore, because the useful ranges of functions of the portable terminals are gradually increasing, the portable terminals satisfy the needs of users more than ever.
In addition, the portable terminal may connect to a host device using Universal Serial Bus (USB) communication, and may transmit a previously stored data to the host device or may read a data stored in the host device.
The USB has an interface standard capable of connecting a variety of peripheral devices by a common connector and may connect a maximum of 127 devices. Due to the lack of a requirement to reboot the host device in order to change settings of the portable terminal which supports the USB, the portable terminal may be connected or disconnected when the host device is being used (hot pluggable).
FIGS. 1A, 1B and 1C illustrate a process of connecting with a host device using a conventional portable terminal.
Referring now to FIGS. 1A to 1C, as shown in FIG. 1A, a plurality of built-in applications is installed in the host device denoted by 100. Each of the plurality of built-in applications is an application provided from the OS of the host device 100. When the host device is connected with a portable terminal through the USB, each of the built-in applications is executed prior to other applications.
As shown in FIG. 1B, when a portable terminal 104 and a host device 106 are connected through a cable 102, the host device 106 requests a descriptor from the portable terminal 104 and performs a USB enumeration process. The USB enumeration process is a process that verifies whether the portable terminal 104 is connected or disconnected to the host device.
When the OS of the host device 106 prioritizes and executes the built-in applications, if connection of the portable terminal 104 is recognized, the host device 106 executes a built-in application corresponding to a protocol supported by the portable terminal 104. As shown in FIG. 1B, the OS of the host device 106 executes an “A” application.
As shown in FIG. 1C, if a user does not execute the built-in applications, he or she ends the execution of the “A” application. Therefore, the OS of the host device 106 may execute not a built-in application but an “F” application (110) which is not only NOT a built-in application but may also control an operation of a portable terminal 108.
In other words, there is a problem in that the conventional portable terminal may be controlled through a built-in application according to the OS of the host device irrespective of a protocol set in a descriptor of the portable terminal.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an apparatus and method for preventing a portable terminal from being controlled through a built-in application of an OS of a host device.